Shopping on line can be easy, simple and save you lots of money. It can also take a lot of your time, frustrate you, and result in unwanted purchases. Now the same can be said for regular high street shopping, but with the vast opportunity presented by the Internet it will pay you to spend a few minutes reading this and understanding how to better optimize your Eu shopping experience:

1. Compare - without doubt the biggest advantage that the Eu offers shoppers today is the ability to compare thousands of Eu at a time. This is a great thing, but not necessarily all the time! Too much can be daunting at times so take advantage of the great comparison sites and where possible let them do the hard work for you.

2. Research - if it has been said it will be on the internet. Ignorance is no longer a justifiable reason for buying the wrong thing. Take the time to research in detail everything that you could possible want to know about

3. Testimonials - don't know anybody that has bought a Eu? Wrong! If the Eu is good the internet will let you know. Use the Internet as a friend and get testimonials before you buy.

4. Questions - Got a question about Eu then search the Forums, FAQ's, Blogs etc. Don't be afraid to ask .....

5. Reputation - Never heard of the company selling Eu? Don't worry, no reason why you should know every company in the world, but you know someone that does! Use the internet to find out what people are saying about Eu and build up a picture of their reputation for sales, returns, customer service, delivery etc.

6. Returns - still worried that even after all of the above your Eu wont be what you want? Check out the returns policy. There is so much competition now that someone, somewhere is bound to offer the terms that you are comfortable with.

7. Feedback - happy with your Eu then let people know, after all you are depending on others people input in your buying decision, so why not give a little back.

8. Security - check for the yellow padlock on the Eu site before you buy, and the s after http:/ /i.e. https:// = a secure site

9. Contact - got a question about Eu, or want to leave a comment then check out the sites contact page. Reputable companies have them and respond.

10. Payment - ready to pay for your Eu, then use your credit card or PayPal! Be aware of companies that don't accept them, there may be genuine reasons but given the huge amount of choice you have when buying online there is no reason at all not to buy via credit card or PayPal.

{{Infobox Geopolitical organisation|native_name = European Union




















|linking_name = the European Union|image_flag = Flag of Europe.svg|image_coat = Portuguese European Union presidency 2007.svg|symbol_type = Presidency insignia|motto = (Latin language)
"United in diversity"|anthem = European anthem(orchestral)|image_map = Location European Union.svg|map_caption =|admin_center_type = Location of European Union institutions|admin_center = Brussels
Strasbourg
Luxembourg City|largest_metropolitan_area = Pariss|languages = |demonym = [European|membership = |ethnic_groups =|ethnic_groups_year =|denonym = European|government_type = |leader_title1 = [European Commission|leader_name1 = José Manuel Barroso European People's Party|leader_title2 = European Parliament|leader_name2 = Hans-Gert Pöttering European People's Party|leader_title3 = Council of the European Union|leader_name3 = Portugal|leader_name4 = [José Sócrates|sovereignty_note =|established_event1 = [Treaty of Rome [1957|established_date2 = [7 February 1992-->|percent_water = 3,08|population_estimate = 494,070,000|population_estimate_rank = 3rd1|population_estimate_year = 2007|population_census =|population_census_year =|population_density_km2 = 114|population_density_sq_mi = 289 )|GDP_PPP_per_capita = $28,213|GDP_PPP_per_capita_rank = 14th1|GDP_nominal = $16,574 billion|GDP_nominal_rank = 1st1|GDP_nominal_year = 2007 (IMF)] |Euro (€) (ISO 4217) (de jure) ] |Bulgarian lev ] |Czech koruna ] |Estonian kroon ] |Latvian lats ] |Maltese lira ] |Romanian leu ] |Swedish krona-->]|calling_code =|footnote1 = If considered as a single entity.-->The European Union (EU) is a unique political and economic community with supranationalism and intergovernmentalism dimensions. It is composed of twenty-seven member states primarily located in Europe. In 1957, six European countries formed the European Economic Community (EEC) by the Treaty of Rome. Since then the EU has grown in size through the accession of new member states and has increased its powers by the addition of new policy areas to its remit. In 1993, the Maastricht Treaty established the base of the current legal framework.

The EU created a single market which seeks to guarantee the Four Freedoms (European Union) between European Union member state.; It maintains a common trade policy, Common Agricultural Policy and Common Fisheries Policy policies, and a European Union Regional policy. In 1999 the EU introduced a common currency, the euro, which has been adopted by thirteen member states. It has also developed a role in Common Foreign and Security Policy, and in justice and home affairs. Passport control and customs checks between many member states were abolished under the Schengen Agreement.

With almost 500 million citizens the EU generates an estimated nominal gross domestic product of €11.6 ($16.5) trillion in 2007. It represents its members in the WTO and observes the G8 summits. 21 EU countries are members of NATO. Important institutions of the EU include the European Commission, the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union, the European Council, the European Court of Justice and the European Central Bank. Citizenship of the European Union elect the Parliament every five years.

History After the end of the Second World War the political climate favoured European unification. It was seen by many as an escape from the extreme forms of nationalism which had devastated the continent. One such attempt to unite Europeans was the European Coal and Steel Community which, while having the modest aim of centralised control of the previously national coal and steel industries of the its member states, was declared to be "a first step in the federation of Europe". The founding members of the Community were Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands and West Germany.

in 1957

Two additional communities were created 1957: the European Economic Community (EEC) establishing a Customs Union, and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) for cooperation in nuclear energy. In 1967 the Merger Treaty created a single set of institutions for the three communities, which were collectively referred to as the European Communities, although more commonly just as the European Community (EC).

In 1973 the European Communities enlarged to include Denmark, Ireland and the United Kingdom. In 1979 the European Parliament election, 1979 of members of the European Parliament were held.



Greece, Spain and Portugal joined in the 1980s. In 1985 the Schengen Agreement was developed between European states to allow for the abolition of systematic border controls between the participating countries. In 1986 the European flag was adopted and leaders signed the Single European Act which was to reduce trade barriers and introduce European Political Cooperation. In 1990 after the fall of the iron curtain, the former East Germany bacame part of the Community as part of a newly reunited Germany. With enlargement toward eastern Europe on the agenda, the Copenhagen Criteria for candidate members to join the European Union were agreed.

The European Union was formally established when the Maastricht Treaty came into force on 1 November 1993.; In 1995 Austria, Sweden and Finland joined the newly established EU. The Amsterdam Treaty, which was signed in 1997, amended the Maastricht treaty in areas such as democracy and foreign policy. Amsterdam was followed by the Treaty of Nice in 2001, which revised the Rome and Maastricht treaties to allow the EU to cope with further enlargement to the east. In 2002 euro notes and coins replaced national currencies in 12 of the member states. In 2004 ten new countries (eight of which had formerly been communist countries) joined the EU.

Later in 2004, the European Constitution was signed in Rome. It was to replace all previous treaties with a single document, however it never completed ratification after rejection by French and Dutch voters in referenda. In 2007, it was agreed to replace that proposal with a new Reform Treaty, that would amend rather than replace the Treaties of the European Union. At the start of 2007 Romania and Bulgaria joined the EU and the euro was adopted by Slovenia.

Geography influences the climate of 22 member states (Vourvourou, Greece)

The territory of the EU consists of the combined territories of its 27 member states with some exceptions outlined below. The territory of the EU is not the same as that of Geography of Europe, as significant parts of the continent, such as Switzerland, Norway and European Russia, are outside the EU, and some Special member state territories and the European Union are part of the EU while not being geographically part of Europe. The EU's member states cover a combined area of .Figure including the four overseas department (French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Réunion) which are an integral part of the EU, but excluding the Overseas collectivity and Overseas territory (France), which are not part of the EU. The total territory of the EU is the List of countries by area. The landscape, climate and economy of the EU are heavily influenced by its long coastline, which is long. The EU has the second longest coastline, after Canada. The combined member states of the EU's share countries bordering the European Union with 21 non-member states for a total of , the fifth longest border in the world.

Some parts of member countries are not part of the EU. This is the sometimes the case even when these territories are part of the European continent. Examples include the Channel Islands and Faroe Islands. Several territories associated with member states that are outside geographic Europe are also not part of the EU (such as Greenland, Aruba, the Netherlands Antilles and all the non-European territories associated with the United Kingdom). On the other hand, some overseas territories are formally part of the EU even if they are not geographically part of Europe, such as the Azores, the Canary Islands, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Madeira, Martinique and Réunion.

When the overseas territories of member states are included, the EU includes most Köppen climate classification from Polar climate to Tropical climate, rendering meteorological averages for the EU as a whole meaningless. In practice, the majority of the population lives either in areas with a Mediterranean climate (Southern Europe), a temperate maritime climate (Western Europe), or a warm summer continental or hemiboreal climate (Eastern Europe).

Member states The European Union currently has 27 member states: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Republic Of Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. There are currently three official candidate countries, Croatia, the Republic of Macedonia and Turkey. In addition the western Balkan countries of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and Serbia are officially recognised as potential candidates.

To join the EU, a country must meet the Copenhagen criteria, defined at the 1993 Copenhagen European Council. These require a stable democracy which respects human rights and the rule of law; a functioning market economy capable of competition within the EU; and the acceptance of the obligations of membership, including EU law. Evaluation of a country's fulfilment of the criteria rests with the European Council.

A number of Western European countries who have chosen not to join the EU have nevertheless been partly integrated into the EU's economy. Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway are a part of the EU's market through the European Economic Area while Switzerland has similar ties through bilateral treaties. The Microstates and the European UnionEuropean microstates: Andorra, Monaco, San Marino, Liechtenstein and Vatican City include use of the euro and other co-operation.

Environment The first environmental policy of the European Community was launched in 1972. Since then it has addressed issues such as acid rain, the thinning of the ozone layer, air quality, noise pollution, waste and EU water policy. The Water framework directive is an example of a water policy, aiming for rivers, lakes, ground and coastal waters to be of "good quality" by 2015. Wildlife is protected through the Natura 2000 programme and covers 30,000 sites throughout Europe. In 2007, the Polish government sought to build a motorway through the Rospuda River, but the Commission has been blocking construction as the valley is a wildlife area covered by the programme.

in Poland from motorway construction.

The Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals was a piece of EU legislation designed to ensure that 30,000 chemicals in daily use are tested for their safety. In 2006, 2006 Côte d'Ivoire toxic waste spill, from a European ship, prompted the Commission to look into legislation regarding toxic waste. With members such as Spain now having criminal laws against shipping toxic waste, the Commission proposed to create criminal sentences for "ecological crimes". Although the Commission's right to propose criminal law was contested, it was confirmed in this case by the Court of Justice.

The EU was involved in the development of the Kyoto protocol and signed it alongside its member states. One way it has sought to counter climate change was by creating the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme, the world's biggest multinational environmental trading scheme. The EU is also involved in trying to secure a post-Kyoto deal. In 2007, the EU agreed to an energy policy committing members to cut their carbon dioxide Greenhouse gas by at least 20% from 1990 levels in 2020. If an international treaty can be achieved, the EU is willing to cut emissions further. The use of Renewable energy in the European Union should be increased to 20%. It is also planned that by 2020, 10% of all automobiles should run on biofuels.

Governance in Strasbourg is a legislative chamber of the EU

The political leadership in the EU is derived from the European Council which consisting in two senior politicians from each member state (normally the prime minister and foreign ministers). It usually meets four times a year. It is headed by a Presidency of the Council of the European Union, with every member state taking the helm of the EU for a period of six months during which they chair all meetings of the European Council and the Council of ministers. The head of Government of the member state holding the presidency becomes the President of the European Union. The member state holding the presidency typically uses it to drive a particular policy agenda such as economic reform, reform of the EU itself, enlargement or furthering European integration.

The EU is governed by a number of institutions, primarily the Council of the European Union the European Commission, and European Parliament. The European Commission acts as the EU's executive branch and is responsible for the day-to-day running of the EU. It is currently composed of 27 commissioners, one from each member state. The President of the Commission and all the other commissioners are nominated by the Council. The President and then the Commission in its entirety, need to be confirmed by Parliament.

home to the Council of the European Union and European Commission.

The Council of the European Union (also known as the Council of Ministers, and not be confused with the European Council) forms one half of the EU's legislative branch. It is composed of the national ministers responsible for the area of policy being addressed. In addition to its legislative functions, the Council also exercises executive functions in relations to the Common Foreign and Security Policy.

The other half of the EU's legislative branch is the European Parliament. The 785 Member of the European Parliament (MEPs) are directly elected by Citizenship of the European Union every five years. Although members of parliament are elected in on a national basis, they sit according to European Parliament political group rather than their nationality. Parliament has near-equal legislative powers with the Council in European Community and has the power to reject or censure the Commission. The speaker (politics) of the Parliament, President of the European Parliament, and is elected by MEPs every two and a half years.

Politics José Manuel Barroso

The EU is often described as being divided into three "Three pillars of the European Union". Under this conception the European Community, upon which the EU was founded, forms the first pillar of the EU. The second pillar consists of the Common Foreign and Security Policy. The third pillar originally consisted of Justice and Home Affairs, however owing to changes introduced by the Amsterdam and Nice treaties, it currently only consists of Police and Judicial Co-operation in Criminal Matters. Broadly speaking, the second and third pillars can be described as the intergovernmental pillars because the supranational institutions of the Commission, Parliament and the Court of Justice play less of a role or none at all, while the lead is taken by the intergovernmental Council (of ministers) and the European Council. Most activities of the EU come under the first, Community pillar. This is mostly economically orientated and the same supranational institutions which are, more or less, excluded from the second and third pillars, have more influence.

The political leadership in the EU is derived from the European Council, consisting of the leaders of each country. The council is currently headed by a Presidency of the Council of the European Union, in person the leader of the president country. Another important leader is the president of the commission; in which country appoints one of the 27 commissioners. Citizens are represented directly through the Parliament, through elections every five years. In the Parliament each country has a set number of seats, that is taken up by representatives of the parties that entered in the election in that country. Some parties (most actively the European Green Party) are forming European parties.

, José Sócrates (Prime Minister of Portugal), helps guide the direction of the EU

Major internal political issues of the EU are the processes of European integration and Enlargement of the European Union. The two processes of integration and enlargement are seen by many as parallel processes, both are important for the EU. Enlargement, the accession of new states to the EU, is a highly politicised issue. Supporters argue it aids democracy in new members, as well as supporting the European economy as a whole. Opponents fear the EU is expanding beyond its current political capabilities, and/or cultural boundaries. Public opinion, and hence political party viewpoint, has been in increased opposition since the simultaneous accession of 10 members in 2004. This is most acute in relation to the Accession of Turkey to the European Union. Integration is another political issue, where national interest in the public view often collides with EU interest. This is caused by the increasing harmonisation between states due to powers having been transferred to European level. This is criticised by eurosceptics who fear the loss of national sovereignty. In 2004 the European Constitution was signed by government leaders. However it did not come into force after it was rejected in referenda in two states.

In October 2007 European leaders finalised a new Lisbon Treaty which contains much of the now defunct constitution, without the latter's constitutional baggage. It is expected to come into force in 2009. If ratified the treaty will introduce more majority voting in the Council and insrease the powers of the European Parliament. The treaty also proposes to abolsh the EU's pillar system. More aspects of foreign policy will now be subject to the supranational, as opposed to intergovernmental, institutions.

Legal system in Luxembourg is the highest authority in the EU.

The EU is based on a series of treaties. These first established the European Community and the EU, and then made amendments to those founding treaties. These are power giving treaties which set broad policy goals and establish institutions with the necessary legal powers to implement those goals. These legal powers include the ability to enact legislationArticle 249 of the Treaty of Rome. which can directly affect all member states and their inhabitants.According to the principle of Direct Effect first invoked in the Court of Justice's decision in . See: Craig and de Búrca, ch. 5. National courts are required to enforce the EU treaties and the laws enacted under them, even if doing so requires them to ignore their national law and constitution.According to the principle of European Union law#Supremacy as established by the ECJ in Case 6/64, Falminio Costa v. ENEL ECR 585. See Craig and de Búrca, ch. 7. See also: Factortame case, Solange II (Re Wuensche Handelsgesellschaft, BVerfG decision of 22 Oct. 1986 3 CMLR 225,265) and Frontini v. Ministero delle Finanze 2 CMLR 372; Raoul George Nicolo 1 CMLR 173.

EU legislation (other than the treaties themselves) comes in two forms: Union directive and European Union regulation. Directives require member states to achieve a certain result while leaving them free to choose how to achieve that result. One of the main advantages being that policy choices can be made at a European leaving while leaving the details of their implementation to national governments.To do otherwise would require the drafting of legislation which would have cope with the frequently divergent legal systems and administrative systems of all of the now 27 member states. See Craig and de Búrca, p. 115 Regulations are legislative acts which become law in all member states the moment they come into force, without the requirement for any implementing measures to have been taken.See: Case 34/73, Variola v. Amministrazione delle Finanze ECR 981 Once in force their contents automatically override conflicting domestic provisions.

One of the complicating features of the EU's legal system is the multiplicity of legislative procedures used to enact directives and regulations. The treaties micro-manage the EU's powers, indicating different ways of adopting legislation for different policy areas and for different areas within the same policy areas.For a good example of this see Title IV of Part Three of the Treaty of Rome, Council Decision (2004/927/EC) of 22 December 2004 providing for certain areas covered by Title IV of Part Three of the Treaty establishing the European Community to be governed by the procedure laid down in Article 251 of that Treaty and the Protocol on Article 67 of the Treaty establishing the European Community attached to the Nice Treaty. A common feature of the EU's legislative procedures, however, is that almost all legislation must be proposed by the Commission, rather than member states or European parliamentarians.. See: European Union legislative procedure. The two most common procedures are co-decision, under which the European Parliament can veto proposed legislation, and consultation, under which Parliament is only permitted to give an opinion which can, subsequently, be ignored by European leaders.

The judicial branch of the EU consists of the European Court of Justice and the Court of First Instance. Together they interpret and apply the treaties and the law of the EU.Article 220 of the Treaty of Rome. The Court of First Instance mainly deals with cases taken by individuals and companies directly before the EU's courts. While the Court of Justice deals with cases taken by member states, the institutions and cases referred to the EU's courts by the courts of member states.;; Decisions from the Court of First Instance can be appealed to the Court of Justice but only on a point of law.Article 225(1) of the Treaty of Rome.

Foreign relations , Javier Solana, is the EU's spokesperson on foreign policy.

The foreign relations of the EU are primarily dealt with through the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP). Co-operation in international trade negotiations, under the Common Commercial Policy, dates back to the establishment of the Community in 1957. The CFSP itself has its origins in the formation of European Political Cooperation in 1970. European Political Co-operation was an informal consultation process between member states on foreign policy matters, with the aim of forming common policies. It was formally introduced into the then European Community by the Single European Act and subsequently renamed as the "Common Foreign and Security Policy" by the Maastricht Treaty.

The Maastricht Treaty gives the Common Foreign and Security Policy the aims of promoting both the EU's own interests and those of the international community as a whole. This includes promoting international co-operation, respect for human rights, democracy and the rule of law.By Article 11 of the Maastricht Treaty.

The Amsterdam Treaty created the office of the High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy (currently held by Javier Solana) to co-ordinate the EU's foreign policy. The High Representative, in conjunction with the current Presidency of the European Union, speaks on behalf of the EU in foreign policy matters and can have the task of articulating ambiguous policy positions created by disagreements among member states. The Common Foreign and Security Policy requires unanimity among the now 27 member states on the appropriate policy to follow on any particular policy. The unanimity and difficult issues treated under the CFSP makes disagreements, such as those which occurred over the war in Iraq, are not uncommon.

summits (33rd G8 summit)

Besides the emerging international policy of the European Union, the international influence of the EU is also felt through the Enlargement of the European Union. The potential benefits of becoming a member of the EU act as an incentive for both political and economic reform in states wishing to fulfil the EU's accession criteria, and are considered a major factor contributing to the reform and stabilisation of former Communist countries in Eastern Europe. This influence on the internal affairs of other countries is generally referred to as "soft power", as opposed to military "hard power". Finnish Prime Minister, Matti Vanhanen, cited the common foreign policy as a factor why Finland is, de facto, no longer a neutral country. It is not known if this view is shared by the leaders of the other neutral countries in the EU.

Besides its own foreign and security policy, the Commission is also gaining greater representation in international bodies. Representation in international bodies is primarily through the European Commissioner for External Relations, who works along side the High Representative. In the UN the EU has gained influence in areas such as aid due to its large contributions in that field (see below). In the G8, the EU has the rights of membership besides that of chairing/hosting summit meetings. The EU is represented at the G8 by the presidents of the Commission and the Council. In the World Trade Organization (WTO), where all 27 member states are represented, the EU as a body is represented by European Commissioner for Trade Peter Mandelson.

Humanitarian aid

The ECHO (European Commission), or "ECHO", provides humanitarian aid from the EU to developing countries. In 2006 its budget amounted to 671 million euro, 48% of which went to the ACP countries. Counting the EU's own contributions and those of its member states together, the EU is the largest aid donor in the world.

The EU's aid has previously been criticised by the think-tank Open Europe for being inefficient, mis-targeted and linked to economic objectives.Furthermore, some charities have claimed European governments have inflated the amount they have spent on aid by incorrectly including money spent on debt relief, foreign students, and refugees. Under the de-inflated figures, the EU did not reach its internal aid target in 2006 and the EU would not reach the international target of 0.7% of GNP until 2015. However only a few countries have reached that target. In 2005 EU aid was 0.34% of the GNP which was higher than that of the United States and Japan. The current European Commissioner for Development & Humanitarian Aid, Louis Michel, has called for aid to be delivered more rapidly, to greater effect, and on humanitarian principles.

Security and defence The EU itself has limited military capability. Member states are responsible for their own territorial defence. Many EU members are also members of NATO. The Western European Union (WEU) is a European security organisation related to the EU. In 1992, the WEU's relationship with the EU was defined, when the EU assigned it the "Petersberg tasks" (humanitarian missions such as peacekeeping and crisis management). These tasks were later transferred from the WEU to the EU by the Amsterdam Treaty; they formed part of the new CFSP and the European Security and Defence Policy. Elements of the WEU are currently being merged into the EU's CFSP, and the President of the WEU is currently CFSP High Representative.

are peacekeeping in areas such as the Balkans.

Following the Kosovo war in 1999, the European Council agreed that "the Union must have the capacity for autonomous action, backed by credible military forces, the means to decide to use them, and the readiness to do so, in order to respond to international crises without prejudice to actions by NATO." To that end, a number of efforts were made to increase the EU's military capability, notably the Helsinki Headline Goal process. After much discussion, the most concrete result was the EU Battlegroups initiative, each of which is planned to be able to deploy quickly about 1500 men each. EU forces have been deployed on peacekeeping missions from Africa to the former Yugoslavia and the middle east. EU military operations are supported by a number of bodies, including the European Defence Agency, European Union Satellite Centre and the European Union Military Staff.

Justice, freedom and security

Much of the EU's competence in the justice and home affairs area originates from the signing of the Schengen Agreement in 1985 on gradual abolition of border controls between six, of the then ten, European Community member states. In order to implement the Schengen Agreement, the signatory states included measures designed to compensate for effect of the reduced border controls in the areas of right of asylum, immigration and criminal justice. The Maastricht Treaty transferred many of the Schengen agreements (although not those on the abolition of border controls) to the EU.By Title IV of the Maastricht Treaty as originally enacted Additional competencies were assigned to the EU by the Maastricht treaty to facilitate the freedom of movement of people by adopting common rules in civil matters, such as contract and family law.

Amendments to these treaties by the Treaty of Amsterdam added a new aim of the EU as the creation of an "area of Justice, Freedom and Security".By Article 1(3) of the Amsterdam Treaty. That treaty also made it easier to pass laws in the justice and home affairs area and more difficult for member states to veto them. It also increased the powers of the European Parliament in relation to Justice and Home affairs' measures.Decisions in certain matters coming to be decided by codecision. Recent legislation include the European Arrest Warrant and directives on family law.Council Regulation (EC) No 2201/2003 of 27 November 2003 concerning jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgements in matrimonial matters and the matters of parental responsibility.

The EU has established agencies to co-ordinate its actions in the justice and home affairs area: Europol for co-operation of police forces, Eurojust for co-operation between prosecutors, and Frontex for co-operation between border control authorities. The EU also operates the Schengen Information System which provides a common database for police and immigration authorities.

The EU has developed a role in human rights protection. Prohibitions against sexual and nationality discrimination have a long standing in the treaties.Article 39 and 114 of the Treaty of Rome on nationality and sexual discrimination respectively. The Amsterdam Treaty supplemented these, by supporting further legislation against discrimination based on race, religion, disability, age and sexual orientation.By Article 2(7) of the Amsterdam Treaty, amending Article 13 of the Treaty of Rome. Using these powers the EU has enacted legislation on sexual discrimination in the work-place, age discrimination and racial discrimination.Council Directive 2000/43/EC of 29 June 2000 implementing the principle of equal treatment between persons irrespective of racial or ethnic origin (OJ L 180, 19.7.2000, p. 22–26); Council Directive 2000/78/EC of 27 November 2000 establishing a general framework for equal treatment in employment and occupation (OJ L 303, 2.12.2000, p. 16–22). In 2000 the EU organised a convention which drew the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. Although the charter has not been given the force of law, it is proposed to do so, first in the Constitutional treaty, and also in the current draft of the Reform Treaty.The charter was formerly included as Part II of the Constitutional Treaty. Article 1(8) of the latest draft of the Reform Treaty would give the charter, subject to certain exceptions, legal force equivalent to the treaties.

Economy has been adopted by eurozone.

The EU was created first and foremost as an economic union. The first, oldest, and largest entity, the European Community, was founded as the European Economic Community. Creating and maintaining the EU's single market has been a prominent goal of the Community, ensuring free movement of people, goods, services and capital. These Four Freedoms (European Union) are extended to the non-member states of Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway via the European Economic Area.

Considered as a single economy the EU is the largest in the world with a nominal gross domestic product of €11.6 (US$16.5) trillion in 2007.Pushing the United States to second place with a GDP of $13.7 trillion. ; The EU is also the largest exporter in the world, and the second largest importer. It is the biggest trading partner to many countries, among others China and India.

Thirteen members of the EU have adopted a common currency, the euro. Collectively the territories of these countries are called the eurozone. The currency is also used by a number of countries outside of the EU. The euro is controlled by the European Central Bank which sets the eurozone's monetary policy.

The EU also operates a competition policy aimed at furthering its aim of ensuring undistorted competition within the single market.Article 3(1)(g) of the Treaty of Rome Under the Competition policy the European Commissioner for Competition exercises the power to put up conditions for or block mergers between companies. The Commissioner can also take action against companies for abusing a dominant position in the marketplace.

Regional development finance infrastructure such as this motorway in Katowice.

There are substantial economical disparities across the EU. Even corrected for purchasing power, the difference between the richest and poorest regionsThe regions counted being NUT-2 and NUT-3 of the Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics. is about a factor of ten. On the high end Frankfurt has €68,751 Purchasing power parity per capita, Paris €67,980, and Inner London €65,138, while Nord-Est (development region) has €5,070 PPP per capita and Bulgaria's Severozapaden has €5,502 PPP per capita. Compared to the EU average, the United States GDP per capita is 35% higher and the Japanese GDP per capita is approximately 15% higher.

To support development of underdeveloped areas of the EU, there are a number of Structural Funds and Cohesion Funds aimed at promoting development of these regions. These regions are primarily located in the new member states of eastern Europe. Several funds provide emergency aid, support for candidate members to transform their country to conform to the EU's standard (Phare, Instrument for Structural Policies for Pre-Accession, and SAPARD), and support to the commonwealth of independent states (TACIS). Furthermore the EU Seventh Framework Programme, sponsors research conducted by consortia from all EU members to work towards a single European Research Area.

Agriculture The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is one the oldest policies of the European Community and was one of its core aims. The policy has the objectives of increasing agricultural production, providing certainty in food supplies, ensuring a high quality of life for farmers, stabilising markets and insuring reasonable prices for consumers. (article 33 of the Treaty of Rome). It was, until recently, operated by a system of subsidies and market intervention. Until the 1990s the policy accounted for over half of the then European Communities' annual budget, and still accounts for around forty percent.

, the largest EU budget expenditure (Burgas, Bulgaria).

The policy's price controls and market interventions led to a great deal of overproduction resulting in so-called butter mountains and wine lakes. These were intervention stores which were built up from produce bought by the Community to insure minimum price levels. In order to reduce the levels of these stores, agricultural produce was often sold on the world market at prices considerably below Community guaranteed prices, or farmers were offered subsidies (amounting to the difference between the Community and world prices) to export their produce outside the Community. This system has been criticised for under-cutting farmers in the developing world. The overproduction has also been criticised on environmental grounds in that it encourages environmentally unfriendly intensive farming methods. Supports of CAP say that the economic support which it gives to farmers provides them with a reasonable standard of living, in what would otherwise be an economically unviable way of life. Although currently the EU's small farmers only receive 8% of CAP's available subsidies.

Since the beginning of the 1990s CAP has been subject to a series of reforms. Initially these reforms included the introduction of milk quotas (by the McSharry reforms in 1992) and, more recently, the 'de-coupling' (or disassociation) of the money farmers receive from the EU and the amount they produce (by the Fischler reforms in 2004), with the aim of reducing oversupply while maintaining income levels. The most recent reform entailed the abolition of the EU's sugar regime which previously involved the carving up of the sugar market between member states and certain African-Caribbean nations with a privileged relationship with the EU.

Energy s from Russia.

The EU has been a legislative power in the area of energy policy for most of its existence. This involvement has its roots in the original European Coal and Steel Community. The introduction of a mandatory and comprehensive European energy policy was approved at the meeting of the European Council in October 2005. The first draft policy was published in January 2007.

The EU currently imports 82% of its petroleum and 57% of its natural gas, making it the world's leading importer of these fuels. In 2007, member states legally agreed the EU to use 20% renewable energy and cut carbon dioxide Greenhouse gas in 2020 by at least 20% compared to 1990 levels. This includes measures that in 2020, one-tenth of all cars and trucks in Treaty of Accession 2005 should be running on biofuels. This is considered to be one of the most ambitious moves of an important industrialised region to fight global warming.

Besides concerns about global warning there are concerns that the EU is largely dependent on other countries, primarily Russia for its energy. This concern has grown following a series of Russia-Ukraine gas dispute between Russia and its neighbours, threatening the flow of gas. As a result the EU is attempting to diversify its energy supply. The EU is involved with six other countries to develop ITER, a nuclear fusion nuclear reactor technology which will be built in the EU at Cadarache. ITER builds on the previous project, Joint European Torus, which is currently the largest nuclear fusion reactor in the world.

Infrastructure

The EU is working to improve cross-border infrastructure within the EU, for example through the Trans-European Networks (TEN). Projects under TEN include the Channel Tunnel, TGV Est, the Fréjus Rail Tunnel, the Oresund bridge and the Brenner Base Tunnel. In 2001 it was estimated that by 2010 the network would cover: 75,200 km of roads; 78,000 km of railways; 330 airports; 270 maritime harbours; and 210 internal harbours.

between Denmark and Sweden, is a priority to increase trade and mobility.

The developing European transport policies will increase the pressure on the environment in many regions by the increased transport network. In the pre-2004 EU members, the major problem in transport deals with congestion and pollution. After the recent enlargement, the new states that joined since 2004 added the problem of solving accessibility to the transport agenda. The Roads and expressways in Poland in particular was in poor condition. At the time of Poland's accession to the EU, 4,600 roads needed to be upgraded to EU standards demanding an approximate expenditure of 17 billion euro.

Another infrastructure project is the Galileo positioning system. Galileo is a proposed Global Navigation Satellite System, to be built by the EU and launched by the European Space Agency (ESA). The Galileo project was launched to reduce the EU's dependency on the US-operated Global Positioning System. Galileo extends its co-operation to other nations outside the EU and is to be operational by 2010. It has been criticised by some due to costs, delays, and the perception of redundancy due to the existing GPS system.

Demographics 2002.jpg|thumb|right|With 114 people per km² the EU is one of the most [List of countries by population density|densely populated regions {{Infobox Geopolitical organisation|native_name = European Union




















|linking_name = the European Union|image_flag = Flag of Europe.svg|image_coat = Portuguese European Union presidency 2007.svg|symbol_type = Presidency insignia|motto = (Latin language)
"United in diversity"|anthem = European anthem(orchestral)|image_map = Location European Union.svg|map_caption =|admin_center_type = Location of European Union institutions|admin_center = Brussels
Strasbourg
Luxembourg City|largest_metropolitan_area = Pariss|languages = |demonym = [European|membership = |ethnic_groups =|ethnic_groups_year =|denonym = European|government_type = |leader_title1 = [European Commission|leader_name1 = José Manuel Barroso European People's Party|leader_title2 = European Parliament|leader_name2 = Hans-Gert Pöttering European People's Party|leader_title3 = Council of the European Union|leader_name3 = Portugal|leader_name4 = [José Sócrates|sovereignty_note =|established_event1 = [Treaty of Rome [1957|established_date2 = [7 February 1992-->|percent_water = 3,08|population_estimate = 494,070,000|population_estimate_rank = 3rd1|population_estimate_year = 2007|population_census =|population_census_year =|population_density_km2 = 114|population_density_sq_mi = 289 )|GDP_PPP_per_capita = $28,213|GDP_PPP_per_capita_rank = 14th1|GDP_nominal = $16,574 billion|GDP_nominal_rank = 1st1|GDP_nominal_year = 2007 (IMF)] |Euro (€) (ISO 4217) (de jure) ] |Bulgarian lev ] |Czech koruna ] |Estonian kroon ] |Latvian lats ] |Maltese lira ] |Romanian leu ] |Swedish krona-->]|calling_code =|footnote1 = If considered as a single entity.-->The European Union (EU) is a unique political and economic community with supranationalism and intergovernmentalism dimensions. It is composed of twenty-seven member states primarily located in Europe. In 1957, six European countries formed the European Economic Community (EEC) by the Treaty of Rome. Since then the EU has grown in size through the accession of new member states and has increased its powers by the addition of new policy areas to its remit. In 1993, the Maastricht Treaty established the base of the current legal framework.

The EU created a single market which seeks to guarantee the Four Freedoms (European Union) between European Union member state.; It maintains a common trade policy, Common Agricultural Policy and Common Fisheries Policy policies, and a European Union Regional policy. In 1999 the EU introduced a common currency, the euro, which has been adopted by thirteen member states. It has also developed a role in Common Foreign and Security Policy, and in justice and home affairs. Passport control and customs checks between many member states were abolished under the Schengen Agreement.

With almost 500 million citizens the EU generates an estimated nominal gross domestic product of €11.6 ($16.5) trillion in 2007. It represents its members in the WTO and observes the G8 summits. 21 EU countries are members of NATO. Important institutions of the EU include the European Commission, the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union, the European Council, the European Court of Justice and the European Central Bank. Citizenship of the European Union elect the Parliament every five years.

History After the end of the Second World War the political climate favoured European unification. It was seen by many as an escape from the extreme forms of nationalism which had devastated the continent. One such attempt to unite Europeans was the European Coal and Steel Community which, while having the modest aim of centralised control of the previously national coal and steel industries of the its member states, was declared to be "a first step in the federation of Europe". The founding members of the Community were Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands and West Germany.

in 1957

Two additional communities were created 1957: the European Economic Community (EEC) establishing a Customs Union, and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) for cooperation in nuclear energy. In 1967 the Merger Treaty created a single set of institutions for the three communities, which were collectively referred to as the European Communities, although more commonly just as the European Community (EC).

In 1973 the European Communities enlarged to include Denmark, Ireland and the United Kingdom. In 1979 the European Parliament election, 1979 of members of the European Parliament were held.



Greece, Spain and Portugal joined in the 1980s. In 1985 the Schengen Agreement was developed between European states to allow for the abolition of systematic border controls between the participating countries. In 1986 the European flag was adopted and leaders signed the Single European Act which was to reduce trade barriers and introduce European Political Cooperation. In 1990 after the fall of the iron curtain, the former East Germany bacame part of the Community as part of a newly reunited Germany. With enlargement toward eastern Europe on the agenda, the Copenhagen Criteria for candidate members to join the European Union were agreed.

The European Union was formally established when the Maastricht Treaty came into force on 1 November 1993.; In 1995 Austria, Sweden and Finland joined the newly established EU. The Amsterdam Treaty, which was signed in 1997, amended the Maastricht treaty in areas such as democracy and foreign policy. Amsterdam was followed by the Treaty of Nice in 2001, which revised the Rome and Maastricht treaties to allow the EU to cope with further enlargement to the east. In 2002 euro notes and coins replaced national currencies in 12 of the member states. In 2004 ten new countries (eight of which had formerly been communist countries) joined the EU.

Later in 2004, the European Constitution was signed in Rome. It was to replace all previous treaties with a single document, however it never completed ratification after rejection by French and Dutch voters in referenda. In 2007, it was agreed to replace that proposal with a new Reform Treaty, that would amend rather than replace the Treaties of the European Union. At the start of 2007 Romania and Bulgaria joined the EU and the euro was adopted by Slovenia.

Geography influences the climate of 22 member states (Vourvourou, Greece)

The territory of the EU consists of the combined territories of its 27 member states with some exceptions outlined below. The territory of the EU is not the same as that of Geography of Europe, as significant parts of the continent, such as Switzerland, Norway and European Russia, are outside the EU, and some Special member state territories and the European Union are part of the EU while not being geographically part of Europe. The EU's member states cover a combined area of .Figure including the four overseas department (French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Réunion) which are an integral part of the EU, but excluding the Overseas collectivity and Overseas territory (France), which are not part of the EU. The total territory of the EU is the List of countries by area. The landscape, climate and economy of the EU are heavily influenced by its long coastline, which is long. The EU has the second longest coastline, after Canada. The combined member states of the EU's share countries bordering the European Union with 21 non-member states for a total of , the fifth longest border in the world.

Some parts of member countries are not part of the EU. This is the sometimes the case even when these territories are part of the European continent. Examples include the Channel Islands and Faroe Islands. Several territories associated with member states that are outside geographic Europe are also not part of the EU (such as Greenland, Aruba, the Netherlands Antilles and all the non-European territories associated with the United Kingdom). On the other hand, some overseas territories are formally part of the EU even if they are not geographically part of Europe, such as the Azores, the Canary Islands, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Madeira, Martinique and Réunion.

When the overseas territories of member states are included, the EU includes most Köppen climate classification from Polar climate to Tropical climate, rendering meteorological averages for the EU as a whole meaningless. In practice, the majority of the population lives either in areas with a Mediterranean climate (Southern Europe), a temperate maritime climate (Western Europe), or a warm summer continental or hemiboreal climate (Eastern Europe).

Member states The European Union currently has 27 member states: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Republic Of Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. There are currently three official candidate countries, Croatia, the Republic of Macedonia and Turkey. In addition the western Balkan countries of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and Serbia are officially recognised as potential candidates.

To join the EU, a country must meet the Copenhagen criteria, defined at the 1993 Copenhagen European Council. These require a stable democracy which respects human rights and the rule of law; a functioning market economy capable of competition within the EU; and the acceptance of the obligations of membership, including EU law. Evaluation of a country's fulfilment of the criteria rests with the European Council.

A number of Western European countries who have chosen not to join the EU have nevertheless been partly integrated into the EU's economy. Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway are a part of the EU's market through the European Economic Area while Switzerland has similar ties through bilateral treaties. The Microstates and the European UnionEuropean microstates: Andorra, Monaco, San Marino, Liechtenstein and Vatican City include use of the euro and other co-operation.

Environment The first environmental policy of the European Community was launched in 1972. Since then it has addressed issues such as acid rain, the thinning of the ozone layer, air quality, noise pollution, waste and EU water policy. The Water framework directive is an example of a water policy, aiming for rivers, lakes, ground and coastal waters to be of "good quality" by 2015. Wildlife is protected through the Natura 2000 programme and covers 30,000 sites throughout Europe. In 2007, the Polish government sought to build a motorway through the Rospuda River, but the Commission has been blocking construction as the valley is a wildlife area covered by the programme.

in Poland from motorway construction.

The Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals was a piece of EU legislation designed to ensure that 30,000 chemicals in daily use are tested for their safety. In 2006, 2006 Côte d'Ivoire toxic waste spill, from a European ship, prompted the Commission to look into legislation regarding toxic waste. With members such as Spain now having criminal laws against shipping toxic waste, the Commission proposed to create criminal sentences for "ecological crimes". Although the Commission's right to propose criminal law was contested, it was confirmed in this case by the Court of Justice.

The EU was involved in the development of the Kyoto protocol and signed it alongside its member states. One way it has sought to counter climate change was by creating the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme, the world's biggest multinational environmental trading scheme. The EU is also involved in trying to secure a post-Kyoto deal. In 2007, the EU agreed to an energy policy committing members to cut their carbon dioxide Greenhouse gas by at least 20% from 1990 levels in 2020. If an international treaty can be achieved, the EU is willing to cut emissions further. The use of Renewable energy in the European Union should be increased to 20%. It is also planned that by 2020, 10% of all automobiles should run on biofuels.

Governance in Strasbourg is a legislative chamber of the EU

The political leadership in the EU is derived from the European Council which consisting in two senior politicians from each member state (normally the prime minister and foreign ministers). It usually meets four times a year. It is headed by a Presidency of the Council of the European Union, with every member state taking the helm of the EU for a period of six months during which they chair all meetings of the European Council and the Council of ministers. The head of Government of the member state holding the presidency becomes the President of the European Union. The member state holding the presidency typically uses it to drive a particular policy agenda such as economic reform, reform of the EU itself, enlargement or furthering European integration.

The EU is governed by a number of institutions, primarily the Council of the European Union the European Commission, and European Parliament. The European Commission acts as the EU's executive branch and is responsible for the day-to-day running of the EU. It is currently composed of 27 commissioners, one from each member state. The President of the Commission and all the other commissioners are nominated by the Council. The President and then the Commission in its entirety, need to be confirmed by Parliament.

home to the Council of the European Union and European Commission.

The Council of the European Union (also known as the Council of Ministers, and not be confused with the European Council) forms one half of the EU's legislative branch. It is composed of the national ministers responsible for the area of policy being addressed. In addition to its legislative functions, the Council also exercises executive functions in relations to the Common Foreign and Security Policy.

The other half of the EU's legislative branch is the European Parliament. The 785 Member of the European Parliament (MEPs) are directly elected by Citizenship of the European Union every five years. Although members of parliament are elected in on a national basis, they sit according to European Parliament political group rather than their nationality. Parliament has near-equal legislative powers with the Council in European Community and has the power to reject or censure the Commission. The speaker (politics) of the Parliament, President of the European Parliament, and is elected by MEPs every two and a half years.

Politics José Manuel Barroso

The EU is often described as being divided into three "Three pillars of the European Union". Under this conception the European Community, upon which the EU was founded, forms the first pillar of the EU. The second pillar consists of the Common Foreign and Security Policy. The third pillar originally consisted of Justice and Home Affairs, however owing to changes introduced by the Amsterdam and Nice treaties, it currently only consists of Police and Judicial Co-operation in Criminal Matters. Broadly speaking, the second and third pillars can be described as the intergovernmental pillars because the supranational institutions of the Commission, Parliament and the Court of Justice play less of a role or none at all, while the lead is taken by the intergovernmental Council (of ministers) and the European Council. Most activities of the EU come under the first, Community pillar. This is mostly economically orientated and the same supranational institutions which are, more or less, excluded from the second and third pillars, have more influence.

The political leadership in the EU is derived from the European Council, consisting of the leaders of each country. The council is currently headed by a Presidency of the Council of the European Union, in person the leader of the president country. Another important leader is the president of the commission; in which country appoints one of the 27 commissioners. Citizens are represented directly through the Parliament, through elections every five years. In the Parliament each country has a set number of seats, that is taken up by representatives of the parties that entered in the election in that country. Some parties (most actively the European Green Party) are forming European parties.

, José Sócrates (Prime Minister of Portugal), helps guide the direction of the EU

Major internal political issues of the EU are the processes of European integration and Enlargement of the European Union. The two processes of integration and enlargement are seen by many as parallel processes, both are important for the EU. Enlargement, the accession of new states to the EU, is a highly politicised issue. Supporters argue it aids democracy in new members, as well as supporting the European economy as a whole. Opponents fear the EU is expanding beyond its current political capabilities, and/or cultural boundaries. Public opinion, and hence political party viewpoint, has been in increased opposition since the simultaneous accession of 10 members in 2004. This is most acute in relation to the Accession of Turkey to the European Union. Integration is another political issue, where national interest in the public view often collides with EU interest. This is caused by the increasing harmonisation between states due to powers having been transferred to European level. This is criticised by eurosceptics who fear the loss of national sovereignty. In 2004 the European Constitution was signed by government leaders. However it did not come into force after it was rejected in referenda in two states.

In October 2007 European leaders finalised a new Lisbon Treaty which contains much of the now defunct constitution, without the latter's constitutional baggage. It is expected to come into force in 2009. If ratified the treaty will introduce more majority voting in the Council and insrease the powers of the European Parliament. The treaty also proposes to abolsh the EU's pillar system. More aspects of foreign policy will now be subject to the supranational, as opposed to intergovernmental, institutions.

Legal system in Luxembourg is the highest authority in the EU.

The EU is based on a series of treaties. These first established the European Community and the EU, and then made amendments to those founding treaties. These are power giving treaties which set broad policy goals and establish institutions with the necessary legal powers to implement those goals. These legal powers include the ability to enact legislationArticle 249 of the Treaty of Rome. which can directly affect all member states and their inhabitants.According to the principle of Direct Effect first invoked in the Court of Justice's decision in . See: Craig and de Búrca, ch. 5. National courts are required to enforce the EU treaties and the laws enacted under them, even if doing so requires them to ignore their national law and constitution.According to the principle of European Union law#Supremacy as established by the ECJ in Case 6/64, Falminio Costa v. ENEL ECR 585. See Craig and de Búrca, ch. 7. See also: Factortame case, Solange II (Re Wuensche Handelsgesellschaft, BVerfG decision of 22 Oct. 1986 3 CMLR 225,265) and Frontini v. Ministero delle Finanze 2 CMLR 372; Raoul George Nicolo 1 CMLR 173.

EU legislation (other than the treaties themselves) comes in two forms: Union directive and European Union regulation. Directives require member states to achieve a certain result while leaving them free to choose how to achieve that result. One of the main advantages being that policy choices can be made at a European leaving while leaving the details of their implementation to national governments.To do otherwise would require the drafting of legislation which would have cope with the frequently divergent legal systems and administrative systems of all of the now 27 member states. See Craig and de Búrca, p. 115 Regulations are legislative acts which become law in all member states the moment they come into force, without the requirement for any implementing measures to have been taken.See: Case 34/73, Variola v. Amministrazione delle Finanze ECR 981 Once in force their contents automatically override conflicting domestic provisions.

One of the complicating features of the EU's legal system is the multiplicity of legislative procedures used to enact directives and regulations. The treaties micro-manage the EU's powers, indicating different ways of adopting legislation for different policy areas and for different areas within the same policy areas.For a good example of this see Title IV of Part Three of the Treaty of Rome, Council Decision (2004/927/EC) of 22 December 2004 providing for certain areas covered by Title IV of Part Three of the Treaty establishing the European Community to be governed by the procedure laid down in Article 251 of that Treaty and the Protocol on Article 67 of the Treaty establishing the European Community attached to the Nice Treaty. A common feature of the EU's legislative procedures, however, is that almost all legislation must be proposed by the Commission, rather than member states or European parliamentarians.. See: European Union legislative procedure. The two most common procedures are co-decision, under which the European Parliament can veto proposed legislation, and consultation, under which Parliament is only permitted to give an opinion which can, subsequently, be ignored by European leaders.

The judicial branch of the EU consists of the European Court of Justice and the Court of First Instance. Together they interpret and apply the treaties and the law of the EU.Article 220 of the Treaty of Rome. The Court of First Instance mainly deals with cases taken by individuals and companies directly before the EU's courts. While the Court of Justice deals with cases taken by member states, the institutions and cases referred to the EU's courts by the courts of member states.;; Decisions from the Court of First Instance can be appealed to the Court of Justice but only on a point of law.Article 225(1) of the Treaty of Rome.

Foreign relations , Javier Solana, is the EU's spokesperson on foreign policy.

The foreign relations of the EU are primarily dealt with through the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP). Co-operation in international trade negotiations, under the Common Commercial Policy, dates back to the establishment of the Community in 1957. The CFSP itself has its origins in the formation of European Political Cooperation in 1970. European Political Co-operation was an informal consultation process between member states on foreign policy matters, with the aim of forming common policies. It was formally introduced into the then European Community by the Single European Act and subsequently renamed as the "Common Foreign and Security Policy" by the Maastricht Treaty.

The Maastricht Treaty gives the Common Foreign and Security Policy the aims of promoting both the EU's own interests and those of the international community as a whole. This includes promoting international co-operation, respect for human rights, democracy and the rule of law.By Article 11 of the Maastricht Treaty.

The Amsterdam Treaty created the office of the High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy (currently held by Javier Solana) to co-ordinate the EU's foreign policy. The High Representative, in conjunction with the current Presidency of the European Union, speaks on behalf of the EU in foreign policy matters and can have the task of articulating ambiguous policy positions created by disagreements among member states. The Common Foreign and Security Policy requires unanimity among the now 27 member states on the appropriate policy to follow on any particular policy. The unanimity and difficult issues treated under the CFSP makes disagreements, such as those which occurred over the war in Iraq, are not uncommon.

summits (33rd G8 summit)

Besides the emerging international policy of the European Union, the international influence of the EU is also felt through the Enlargement of the European Union. The potential benefits of becoming a member of the EU act as an incentive for both political and economic reform in states wishing to fulfil the EU's accession criteria, and are considered a major factor contributing to the reform and stabilisation of former Communist countries in Eastern Europe. This influence on the internal affairs of other countries is generally referred to as "soft power", as opposed to military "hard power". Finnish Prime Minister, Matti Vanhanen, cited the common foreign policy as a factor why Finland is, de facto, no longer a neutral country. It is not known if this view is shared by the leaders of the other neutral countries in the EU.

Besides its own foreign and security policy, the Commission is also gaining greater representation in international bodies. Representation in international bodies is primarily through the European Commissioner for External Relations, who works along side the High Representative. In the UN the EU has gained influence in areas such as aid due to its large contributions in that field (see below). In the G8, the EU has the rights of membership besides that of chairing/hosting summit meetings. The EU is represented at the G8 by the presidents of the Commission and the Council. In the World Trade Organization (WTO), where all 27 member states are represented, the EU as a body is represented by European Commissioner for Trade Peter Mandelson.

Humanitarian aid

The ECHO (European Commission), or "ECHO", provides humanitarian aid from the EU to developing countries. In 2006 its budget amounted to 671 million euro, 48% of which went to the ACP countries. Counting the EU's own contributions and those of its member states together, the EU is the largest aid donor in the world.

The EU's aid has previously been criticised by the think-tank Open Europe for being inefficient, mis-targeted and linked to economic objectives.Furthermore, some charities have claimed European governments have inflated the amount they have spent on aid by incorrectly including money spent on debt relief, foreign students, and refugees. Under the de-inflated figures, the EU did not reach its internal aid target in 2006 and the EU would not reach the international target of 0.7% of GNP until 2015. However only a few countries have reached that target. In 2005 EU aid was 0.34% of the GNP which was higher than that of the United States and Japan. The current European Commissioner for Development & Humanitarian Aid, Louis Michel, has called for aid to be delivered more rapidly, to greater effect, and on humanitarian principles.

Security and defence The EU itself has limited military capability. Member states are responsible for their own territorial defence. Many EU members are also members of NATO. The Western European Union (WEU) is a European security organisation related to the EU. In 1992, the WEU's relationship with the EU was defined, when the EU assigned it the "Petersberg tasks" (humanitarian missions such as peacekeeping and crisis management). These tasks were later transferred from the WEU to the EU by the Amsterdam Treaty; they formed part of the new CFSP and the European Security and Defence Policy. Elements of the WEU are currently being merged into the EU's CFSP, and the President of the WEU is currently CFSP High Representative.

are peacekeeping in areas such as the Balkans.

Following the Kosovo war in 1999, the European Council agreed that "the Union must have the capacity for autonomous action, backed by credible military forces, the means to decide to use them, and the readiness to do so, in order to respond to international crises without prejudice to actions by NATO." To that end, a number of efforts were made to increase the EU's military capability, notably the Helsinki Headline Goal process. After much discussion, the most concrete result was the EU Battlegroups initiative, each of which is planned to be able to deploy quickly about 1500 men each. EU forces have been deployed on peacekeeping missions from Africa to the former Yugoslavia and the middle east. EU military operations are supported by a number of bodies, including the European Defence Agency, European Union Satellite Centre and the European Union Military Staff.

Justice, freedom and security

Much of the EU's competence in the justice and home affairs area originates from the signing of the Schengen Agreement in 1985 on gradual abolition of border controls between six, of the then ten, European Community member states. In order to implement the Schengen Agreement, the signatory states included measures designed to compensate for effect of the reduced border controls in the areas of right of asylum, immigration and criminal justice. The Maastricht Treaty transferred many of the Schengen agreements (although not those on the abolition of border controls) to the EU.By Title IV of the Maastricht Treaty as originally enacted Additional competencies were assigned to the EU by the Maastricht treaty to facilitate the freedom of movement of people by adopting common rules in civil matters, such as contract and family law.

Amendments to these treaties by the Treaty of Amsterdam added a new aim of the EU as the creation of an "area of Justice, Freedom and Security".By Article 1(3) of the Amsterdam Treaty. That treaty also made it easier to pass laws in the justice and home affairs area and more difficult for member states to veto them. It also increased the powers of the European Parliament in relation to Justice and Home affairs' measures.Decisions in certain matters coming to be decided by codecision. Recent legislation include the European Arrest Warrant and directives on family law.Council Regulation (EC) No 2201/2003 of 27 November 2003 concerning jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgements in matrimonial matters and the matters of parental responsibility.

The EU has established agencies to co-ordinate its actions in the justice and home affairs area: Europol for co-operation of police forces, Eurojust for co-operation between prosecutors, and Frontex for co-operation between border control authorities. The EU also operates the Schengen Information System which provides a common database for police and immigration authorities.

The EU has developed a role in human rights protection. Prohibitions against sexual and nationality discrimination have a long standing in the treaties.Article 39 and 114 of the Treaty of Rome on nationality and sexual discrimination respectively. The Amsterdam Treaty supplemented these, by supporting further legislation against discrimination based on race, religion, disability, age and sexual orientation.By Article 2(7) of the Amsterdam Treaty, amending Article 13 of the Treaty of Rome. Using these powers the EU has enacted legislation on sexual discrimination in the work-place, age discrimination and racial discrimination.Council Directive 2000/43/EC of 29 June 2000 implementing the principle of equal treatment between persons irrespective of racial or ethnic origin (OJ L 180, 19.7.2000, p. 22–26); Council Directive 2000/78/EC of 27 November 2000 establishing a general framework for equal treatment in employment and occupation (OJ L 303, 2.12.2000, p. 16–22). In 2000 the EU organised a convention which drew the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. Although the charter has not been given the force of law, it is proposed to do so, first in the Constitutional treaty, and also in the current draft of the Reform Treaty.The charter was formerly included as Part II of the Constitutional Treaty. Article 1(8) of the latest draft of the Reform Treaty would give the charter, subject to certain exceptions, legal force equivalent to the treaties.

Economy has been adopted by eurozone.

The EU was created first and foremost as an economic union. The first, oldest, and largest entity, the European Community, was founded as the European Economic Community. Creating and maintaining the EU's single market has been a prominent goal of the Community, ensuring free movement of people, goods, services and capital. These Four Freedoms (European Union) are extended to the non-member states of Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway via the European Economic Area.

Considered as a single economy the EU is the largest in the world with a nominal gross domestic product of €11.6 (US$16.5) trillion in 2007.Pushing the United States to second place with a GDP of $13.7 trillion. ; The EU is also the largest exporter in the world, and the second largest importer. It is the biggest trading partner to many countries, among others China and India.

Thirteen members of the EU have adopted a common currency, the euro. Collectively the territories of these countries are called the eurozone. The currency is also used by a number of countries outside of the EU. The euro is controlled by the European Central Bank which sets the eurozone's monetary policy.

The EU also operates a competition policy aimed at furthering its aim of ensuring undistorted competition within the single market.Article 3(1)(g) of the Treaty of Rome Under the Competition policy the European Commissioner for Competition exercises the power to put up conditions for or block mergers between companies. The Commissioner can also take action against companies for abusing a dominant position in the marketplace.

Regional development finance infrastructure such as this motorway in Katowice.

There are substantial economical disparities across the EU. Even corrected for purchasing power, the difference between the richest and poorest regionsThe regions counted being NUT-2 and NUT-3 of the Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics. is about a factor of ten. On the high end Frankfurt has €68,751 Purchasing power parity per capita, Paris €67,980, and Inner London €65,138, while Nord-Est (development region) has €5,070 PPP per capita and Bulgaria's Severozapaden has €5,502 PPP per capita. Compared to the EU average, the United States GDP per capita is 35% higher and the Japanese GDP per capita is approximately 15% higher.

To support development of underdeveloped areas of the EU, there are a number of Structural Funds and Cohesion Funds aimed at promoting development of these regions. These regions are primarily located in the new member states of eastern Europe. Several funds provide emergency aid, support for candidate members to transform their country to conform to the EU's standard (Phare, Instrument for Structural Policies for Pre-Accession, and SAPARD), and support to the commonwealth of independent states (TACIS). Furthermore the EU Seventh Framework Programme, sponsors research conducted by consortia from all EU members to work towards a single European Research Area.

Agriculture The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is one the oldest policies of the European Community and was one of its core aims. The policy has the objectives of increasing agricultural production, providing certainty in food supplies, ensuring a high quality of life for farmers, stabilising markets and insuring reasonable prices for consumers. (article 33 of the Treaty of Rome). It was, until recently, operated by a system of subsidies and market intervention. Until the 1990s the policy accounted for over half of the then European Communities' annual budget, and still accounts for around forty percent.

, the largest EU budget expenditure (Burgas, Bulgaria).

The policy's price controls and market interventions led to a great deal of overproduction resulting in so-called butter mountains and wine lakes. These were intervention stores which were built up from produce bought by the Community to insure minimum price levels. In order to reduce the levels of these stores, agricultural produce was often sold on the world market at prices considerably below Community guaranteed prices, or farmers were offered subsidies (amounting to the difference between the Community and world prices) to export their produce outside the Community. This system has been criticised for under-cutting farmers in the developing world. The overproduction has also been criticised on environmental grounds in that it encourages environmentally unfriendly intensive farming methods. Supports of CAP say that the economic support which it gives to farmers provides them with a reasonable standard of living, in what would otherwise be an economically unviable way of life. Although currently the EU's small farmers only receive 8% of CAP's available subsidies.

Since the beginning of the 1990s CAP has been subject to a series of reforms. Initially these reforms included the introduction of milk quotas (by the McSharry reforms in 1992) and, more recently, the 'de-coupling' (or disassociation) of the money farmers receive from the EU and the amount they produce (by the Fischler reforms in 2004), with the aim of reducing oversupply while maintaining income levels. The most recent reform entailed the abolition of the EU's sugar regime which previously involved the carving up of the sugar market between member states and certain African-Caribbean nations with a privileged relationship with the EU.

Energy s from Russia.

The EU has been a legislative power in the area of energy policy for most of its existence. This involvement has its roots in the original European Coal and Steel Community. The introduction of a mandatory and comprehensive European energy policy was approved at the meeting of the European Council in October 2005. The first draft policy was published in January 2007.

The EU currently imports 82% of its petroleum and 57% of its natural gas, making it the world's leading importer of these fuels. In 2007, member states legally agreed the EU to use 20% renewable energy and cut carbon dioxide Greenhouse gas in 2020 by at least 20% compared to 1990 levels. This includes measures that in 2020, one-tenth of all cars and trucks in Treaty of Accession 2005 should be running on biofuels. This is considered to be one of the most ambitious moves of an important industrialised region to fight global warming.

Besides concerns about global warning there are concerns that the EU is largely dependent on other countries, primarily Russia for its energy. This concern has grown following a series of Russia-Ukraine gas dispute between Russia and its neighbours, threatening the flow of gas. As a result the EU is attempting to diversify its energy supply. The EU is involved with six other countries to develop ITER, a nuclear fusion nuclear reactor technology which will be built in the EU at Cadarache. ITER builds on the previous project, Joint European Torus, which is currently the largest nuclear fusion reactor in the world.

Infrastructure

The EU is working to improve cross-border infrastructure within the EU, for example through the Trans-European Networks (TEN). Projects under TEN include the Channel Tunnel, TGV Est, the Fréjus Rail Tunnel, the Oresund bridge and the Brenner Base Tunnel. In 2001 it was estimated that by 2010 the network would cover: 75,200 km of roads; 78,000 km of railways; 330 airports; 270 maritime harbours; and 210 internal harbours.

between Denmark and Sweden, is a priority to increase trade and mobility.

The developing European transport policies will increase the pressure on the environment in many regions by the increased transport network. In the pre-2004 EU members, the major problem in transport deals with congestion and pollution. After the recent enlargement, the new states that joined since 2004 added the problem of solving accessibility to the transport agenda. The Roads and expressways in Poland in particular was in poor condition. At the time of Poland's accession to the EU, 4,600 roads needed to be upgraded to EU standards demanding an approximate expenditure of 17 billion euro.

Another infrastructure project is the Galileo positioning system. Galileo is a proposed Global Navigation Satellite System, to be built by the EU and launched by the European Space Agency (ESA). The Galileo project was launched to reduce the EU's dependency on the US-operated Global Positioning System. Galileo extends its co-operation to other nations outside the EU and is to be operational by 2010. It has been criticised by some due to costs, delays, and the perception of redundancy due to the existing GPS system.

Demographics 2002.jpg|thumb|right|With 114 people per km² the EU is one of the most [List of countries by population density|densely populated regions

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